It's strange to watch the press musical chairs. We've long moved from a society where someone starts a job at X and then retires from X. But it is still strange to me to see the revolving press door. Borzou Daragahi started covering the Iraq War in the lead up -- he was with ASSOCIATED PRESS. After the war started, he covered it for THE LOS ANGELS TIMES. Most recently, he's been at THE FINANCIAL TIMES OF LONDON and BUZZFEED NEWS. Now he's at THE INDEPENDENT. He has an important article which opens:
In a move that has not yet been publicly announced but will be hailed by civil society activists and human rights monitors, Iraq’s reform-minded prime minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi has decided to disband the so-called Baghdad Preservation Forces.
The Interior Ministry branch was formed less than a year ago by Kadhimi’s predecessor Adel Abdul-Mahdi amid a wave of anti-government protests. Its original aim was to “protect” the demonstrators from harm. Instead, it served as a sort of praetorian guard for Baghdad’s political elite, harassing and brutalising peaceful protesters clamouring for change.
Kadhimi had said a month ago he was going to restructure the force after a video emerged in late July showing members of the group torturing an adolescent boy, Hamed Saeed, who was among the tens of thousands of protesters who have taken part in nationwide rallies against the corrupt network of political parties and militias that dominate Iraq today.
Now Iraqi media outlets are reporting that Kadhimi is going to get rid of the force altogether, and merge its personnel into the regular police.
It's an important article -- read on to see how various governments -- US, Iran and France -- are putting pressure on Iraq and how Borzou doesn't feel they're offering Iraq much of anything. Liz Sly is another journalist covering Iraq who has been at several outlets, Jane Arraf would be another. Michael Gordon's been at just two: NYT and now THE WALL STREET JOURNAL. NYT, by the way, has Alissa J. Rubin back over their Iraq coverage.
Over at THE NATIONAL INTEREST, Bonnie Kristian notes Mustafa's recent comments regarding US forces not being needed on the ground in Iraq for "support:"
American policymakers should take notice. After seventeen years of fighting, the war in Iraq is a demonstrable failure—and yet a failure with no end in sight.
The Trump administration has repeatedly promised to draw down the U.S. military presence in Iraq, but it’s not clear President Donald Trump really wants to leave. Apparently unguided by any coherent strategy, he threatens further escalation as easily as he condemns the initial invasion. His passion for ending “endless wars” is perhaps not all-consuming.
There are about five thousand American troops in Iraq now, basically the same deployment level as when this administration began. When the Iraqi parliament in January demanded all foreign troops leave their country, the administration rejected the request. “At this time, any delegation sent to Iraq would be dedicated to discussing how best to recommit to our strategic partnership,” said the State Department, “not to discuss troop withdrawal.”
So why are they still there? When does the war end? When does a real withdrawal ever take place?
It's really pathetic how, in the US, we've allowed the issue of the war to vanish and we've been tricked by politicians into believing the war had ended or that it was so minor that it didn't matter. How many people promised to end the war but didn't? Include Nancy Pelosi on that list. Her promise for the 2006 mid-terms was that if the voters gave the Democrats control over just one house of Congress -- just one -- the war would be ended. The voters gave them control over both houses -- the House of Representatives and the Senate -- and the war continued.
Yesterday, XINHUA noted, "A security member and a civilian were wounded in a roadside bomb exploded near a convoy of trucks belonging to the U.S.-led coalition forces in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, the Iraqi military said on Sunday." "Harm's way" apparently isn't a concern of the US electorate or the US press.
In other news, Mina Aldroubi (THE NATIONAL) reports:
Iraqi security forces arrested 13 people late on Saturday who were suspected of carrying illegal arms in operations in Baghdad and Basra.
For years, the government has faced a major challenge to rein in armed militias and keep weapons under state control.
“Ten individuals were arrested in Basra, who were suspected of carrying heavy weaponry, after a security operation was launched to raid and inspect various areas in the city,” armed forces spokesman Yehia Rasool said on Twitter.
Turning to the issue of Iraq's religious minorities, we'll note this from Qassim Khidir (AFP via TIMES OF ISRAEL):
Across Iraq, Jewish roots run deep: Abraham was born in Ur in the southern plains, and the Babylonian Talmud, a central text of Judaism, was compiled in the town of the same name in the present-day Arab state.
Jews once comprised 40 percent of Baghdad’s population, according to a 1917 Ottoman census.
But after the creation of Israel in 1948, regional tensions skyrocketed and anti-Semitic campaigns took hold, pushing most of Iraq’s Jews to flee.
In the north, the Kurdish regional capital of Erbil was once the heart of the ancient kingdom of Adiabene, which converted to Judaism in the 1st century and helped fund the building of the Temple of Jerusalem.
Today, Iraqis have fond memories of Jewish friends and neighbors, including 82-year-old Farhadi, whose father owned a shop in a Jewish-majority district of Erbil.
The population of Iraq is approximately 37,548,000 (UN, 2016). The three largest demographic groups are Shi’a Arabs, Sunni Arabs and Kurds, most of whom adhere to Sunni Islam. Precise demographic breakdowns are impossible to come by, in the absence of recent census data and due to political sensitivities surrounding the issue. According to reliable estimates, 99 per cent of Iraqis are Muslim, of which 60-65 per cent are Shi’a and 32-37 per cent are Sunni. The remaining population is composed of various religious minorities. Prior to the ISIS advance, there were an estimated 350,000 Christians in Iraq, 500,000 Yezidis, 200,000 Kaka’i, less than 5,000 Sabean-Mandaeans and a small number of Bahá’í.
In terms of ethnicity, Arabs make up between 75 – 80 per cent of the population and Kurds a further 15-20 per cent. Ethnic minorities include Turkmen, Shabak, Chaldeans, Assyrians, Armenians, black Iraqis and Roma. Some Yezidis consider themselves a distinct ethnic group, while others identify as being Kurds.
A report from the US Justice Dept last year covered various religious minorities in Iraq -- Christian, Yezidi, Sabean-Mandeans, Baha'i, Kaka'i and Jews. At the end of June, RUDAW reported:
The presence of militia groups and lack of reconstruction across
northern Iraq is a huge barrier to the safe return of religious
minorities to their former homes, according to Nadine Maenza, vice chair
of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom
(USCIRF).
Speaking to Rudaw's Hiwa Jamal, Maenza spoke of the various obstacles
preventing minority groups – including Christians and Yezidis – from
returning home, and called on Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al Kadhimi to
pull back Iran-backed militias present in the area.
"With the Yezidis and Christians, they are having a hard time returning
home. They don't feel safe, they're being harassed," Maenza said.
"“There aren't the kind of services that they need for their
families...you want to feel safe, and this isn't the case in a lot of
areas."
According to Maenza, a lack of security is one of the biggest barriers
to safe return, particularly due to the presence of Iran-backed militias
in the Nineveh Plains, historically home to various religious
minorities including Yezidis, Christians and Shabaks.
The following sites updated:
